RA Torrey was a famous evangelist who preached in the late 19th century and early 20th century. After initially resisting God's call on his life, specifically preaching, he came to Christ and became one of history's most famous preachers.
Special thanks to Pastor Ed Backell for this episode.
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[00:00:00] Revived Thoughts is a production of Revived Studios.
[00:00:09] This is Troiangel and you're listening to Revived Thoughts.
[00:00:20] Isn't that what we need tonight?
[00:00:21] A fire that will burn up this pride of ours, this selfishness of ours, this vanity of
[00:00:26] ours, this worldliness of ours.
[00:00:30] Every episode we bring you a different voice from history and a sermon that they delivered.
[00:00:36] Today we're listening to a sermon by R.A. Tori preached somewhere in Asia in the early
[00:00:42] 1900s while he was on a tour.
[00:00:45] Now we're going to jump into it, Troy.
[00:00:47] How you doing?
[00:00:48] This is Valentine's Day week.
[00:00:51] Troy and I are recording us right before Valentine's but listeners will be hearing us right after Valentine's.
[00:00:56] Do they do Valentine's Day in Indonesia?
[00:00:59] They do not do Valentine's Day in Indonesia, but they are having a day off for their election so there is still a lot going on.
[00:01:07] It's actually a very busy time to be in Indonesia.
[00:01:10] However, if you are listening to this the day after Valentine's Day or any time that you're listening to this,
[00:01:15] you're back through the catalog and listening to these episodes.
[00:01:19] If you want to, we have an episode out on Saint Valentine that we did a couple of years ago and why there is a Valentine's Day.
[00:01:25] And how we went from a martyr who died for Jesus to like a floating baby with hearts and candy.
[00:01:33] So you should go look up that episode sometimes. It's kind of fun but yeah so you're correct that this is right after Valentine's Day
[00:01:40] when it will be going out but we have my wife and I, we have our own plans for the weekend to do something fun.
[00:01:45] So that was asking you do Valentine's Day there?
[00:01:48] Yeah we're gonna get some time. I got a friend of ours to babysit the kids so we're gonna have a few hours to go do something pleasant and out there.
[00:01:57] Probably just be dinner but you know it's something at least so that'll be nice.
[00:02:01] What about you sir? What are you guys gonna be doing?
[00:02:04] I don't know, we have a newborn so that kind of limits our range of you know because she's still feeding so we got like a two hour window.
[00:02:12] We might try well what we'll probably do is take baby with us and then we have a three-year-old that will sit her for.
[00:02:21] But we'll do something. Our church is having, they do like a Valentine couples dinner with child care in such and so we'll do that no doubt that's always a good time.
[00:02:32] I forgot what I'm doing on Valentine's Day morning.
[00:02:35] I'm recording the actual Valentine's Day morning.
[00:02:38] I'm recording a deep dive with you if our calendars sync up well so I'm looking forward to listening.
[00:02:43] That's our Valentine day present and won't be, won't be ready on Valentine's Day but perhaps you will finally have the typing rebellion.
[00:02:50] If you've been listening to our show for a while you've been hearing us tease this for like a year so sorry about that but at least it's now getting recorded.
[00:02:58] Yeah and as always Patreon listeners will get first dibs on listening to that it'll eventually come out to the main feed but we're looking forward to it.
[00:03:08] I'm happy to say if you are listening you're going oh thank goodness, I think they've been talking about for a very long time especially if you're Patreon.
[00:03:14] It's finally coming together.
[00:03:16] The next deep dive is already well into way I already know what the subject of where we're going next and I've already begun to process that out so that one won't take nearly as long.
[00:03:26] It's also not nearly as difficult, not difficult a subject because the typing rebellion is not difficult it's just enormous whereas the next subject will be much more easy to follow.
[00:03:34] Yeah so keep an ear out for that in 2034 and we'll get that.
[00:03:39] We'll get that to A-taff.
[00:03:40] That's the correct, that's the correct deep dive prediction there.
[00:03:44] Jill we had some positive responses to the show not even like a necessarily it wasn't actually response to the show these were not listens but a person on Twitter named Cody said hey my favorite podcast right now is and a few of you were kind enough to write in revive thoughts.
[00:04:00] We really appreciate that Aaron V wrote in either revive thoughts with the revive thoughts he tagged us there or the Baptist podcast podcast broadcast, sorry about that guys with at 1689 broadcast.
[00:04:12] I don't know if you're familiar with their work so I'll go check them out right there named next to us so they must be pretty good I guess right.
[00:04:19] And then another gentleman named Nate was also in the thread and he gave us a little shout out he said either haunted cosmos or revive thoughts thank you Nate for mentioning us alongside the wonderful haunted cosmos which is vaunted and loved and we had one of those guys on our show been a few months ago they're wonderful.
[00:04:38] So thank you very much guys for mentioning us if you're ever out there on the internet and somebody saying hey what's your favorite podcast we really appreciate it when you mention us.
[00:04:46] This is not the first time it happens happened before but it is always wonderful and very it's very nice just may help me see that I go somebody's thinking it's that sauce and we really make sure you feel good.
[00:04:55] Okay are a Tory now now long time listeners OG listeners may remember an episode on our a Tory we did over three years ago only one that we've done and we're happy to return to him a little bit of a controversial figure has as usual but more charismatic than we typically do in the show.
[00:05:15] But we're excited to bring this sermon to you here since it's been a hot second we're going to do a quick overview on his life in general and sure is going to film some more details but R.A. Tory stands for Ruben like the sandwich archer like the medieval military unit and Tory just for Tory R.A. Ruben archer Tory Tory like the the wigs and the Tories everyone knows from the 1700s as for the political parties.
[00:05:44] Not on my radar. I thought it was so but it was so obvious. Okay never mind. Yeah Tory like the political party of the 1500s where are we where are we at in his well actually it's not spelled like that's from the 1700s but it's spelled differently but you know it sounds like the same thing.
[00:06:04] Good. Our a Tory born in New Jersey so this is an American guy 1856 versus birth dates comes from a Christian home comes from a wealthy home of bankers and lawyers so they grew up not needing anything Tory was influenced by his family's faith quite a bit and throughout his life he mentions and emphasizes his mother's faith in that impact on his life.
[00:06:31] Tory talks about being felt to be called a Christian very early on in his life he felt that God wanted him to be a preacher he didn't really want to be a preacher but he felt that God was calling him to be a preacher so he went through a little bit of a you know a little bit of a rebellious towards God phase of he doesn't doesn't quite want to go where God wants what you know where you feel is feeling God is wanting him to go here so putting off the idea of committing to Christ he was a pretty shy young man.
[00:07:01] This all changed a little bit around when he was 15 years old and he went to Yale while he was at Yale he went off and lived the worldly student lifestyle that sometimes happens when people go off to college but while he was living that life and doing the party scene he had one night a dream that his mom came to him and said he needed to preach the gospel now later on when he tells the story he finds out from his mom that she remembered waking up on the same night of the story and praying for him in the middle of the night so it seems that whatever was going on and he was
[00:07:31] it was somehow waking up his mom and causing him to hurt a pray for him too which is not the first time we've actually heard something like this happens it's actually happened on the show another time forgetting the name of the guy who it was but it didn't happen I do remember it
[00:07:44] and Tory does he's waking up his mom is in this dream and when he says he fully wakes up he suddenly has this unknown never before seen desire to kill himself he suddenly feels like he doesn't want to live anymore
[00:08:00] and that it's just a just intense desire he's never even remotely felt this way and yet in the middle of the night after that dream he felt very strongly
[00:08:09] he said the desire was so strong it felt like he was overpowering him
[00:08:12] and so he just immediately dropped to his knees and began praying and prayed out oh god deliver me from this burden I'll even preach
[00:08:20] and as soon as he said those words boom it was the entire wrestling struggling session was immediately over
[00:08:27] all desire was gone and he felt just a deep inner peace that he had never felt before
[00:08:32] and that was it we didn't have a whole lot of other details on it that's that's the story that's where it all changes from that moment
[00:08:38] it really is interesting to me because I feel like unlike some people who just don't believe in god or maybe they weren't exposed to him
[00:08:44] or they just were caught in sin for Tory it really seemed to be the preaching like I will do anything but preach fine god I will even preach
[00:08:54] it's almost kind of reminding me of Jonah like he's running away from this one thing the thing that he's not wanting to do
[00:08:59] and that is preaching now he goes off after this he finishes at Yale he goes to Yale Divinity School he gets his you know degree in preaching and all that
[00:09:09] he also began to start trying to get into church and to speak with people and evangelizing but he was very very shy still
[00:09:17] his first few times speaking he basically sat on a chair and with his hands from the way I can understand
[00:09:22] his hands underneath the chair like gripping the you know the seat of the chair he would share the gospel sitting there like that because he was so nervous
[00:09:30] and I don't know I don't want to criticize him maybe it's very effective but I can't imagine that was super effective but I'm sure it was memorable
[00:09:37] and I got to say that's that's so I as speaking somebody who can get a little bit shy speaking above like I can
[00:09:43] I can relate to that to that pain feeling and I respect Tory for it in 1878 Diel Moody came into town and Tory got to hear him speak
[00:09:51] and had a really profound impact on Tory and really kind of lit a fire for him for the was to hear the gospel
[00:09:58] not long after that he met his wife Clara while pastoring a church there and they went off to Europe where
[00:10:04] a ouratory would train universities there this is late 1800s so the liberal theology movement is gaining a lot of speed
[00:10:14] a lot of prestigious theological universities are becoming very liberal and secular during this transitional air during this era
[00:10:23] and ouratory is a big opponent of this transition he is very much against the liberal theology movement
[00:10:31] after studying there for a little bit he comes back to America has a few different preaching jobs there
[00:10:37] and is really impacted by George Mueller who has written a book by this time in this book that George Mueller wrote
[00:10:46] really inspires ouratory to take his own life in the same direction that that Mueller took his
[00:10:52] at this time Moody was now then ready to open up this bible school that he had been talking about
[00:10:58] and planning for years and he needed somebody to run it and our a Tory's name was recommended
[00:11:04] and so after meeting with Tory DL Moody offered him the job and for the next 20 years
[00:11:10] Tory was the superintendent of the bible school that DL Moody founded now Tory is much more charismatic
[00:11:16] than many of the speakers we have he's not the most charismatic speaker we were featured on
[00:11:20] revive thoughts we had a B Simpson I think that would and watch me and John sung so we have certainly
[00:11:26] people from abroad theological spectrum on revive thoughts and to be honest that's intentional we
[00:11:31] think that the greatest sermons ever preached or not preached specifically in one theology camp
[00:11:35] but that all of the camps have different speakers that have had a profound impact on church history
[00:11:41] and we don't really tend to judge them so much as we want you the listener to listen to them and
[00:11:47] you know make decisions for yourself but I say all that is say Tory also was reformed at a bit
[00:11:53] in his disposition like he'd been raised that way so he was very firm in a lot of the things he
[00:11:58] believed which makes which is being explained because of this next saga he's going to get into a
[00:12:03] battle that I have never heard of we've done multiple multiples of episodes on DL Moody and this
[00:12:07] was the first time I'd ever read about this and it was very interesting and kind of creepy so in the
[00:12:13] late 1800s Chicago was being divided by a man who had come to town claiming to be a divine healer
[00:12:20] his last name is Dowing it's calling him Dowing for this episode and DL Moody was on one side
[00:12:25] this divide with Tory and on the other side was this man named Dowie and Dowie claimed Moody and
[00:12:30] Tory lacked the faith they needed to see the healings that he was seeing at his tent revivals and it
[00:12:36] was causing a big split in the churches in Chicago churches were either having kind of DL Moody and
[00:12:41] R.A. Tory speak at them or they were having this Dowie speak at them and it was just causing a lot
[00:12:45] of issues in 1898 he claimed this Dowie guy claimed to have a letter by Tory claiming that Tory was
[00:12:53] begging Dowie to heal his daughter and then he had granted his request and healed Tory's daughter
[00:12:58] this letter was fake and Moody called Dowdy out and his next sermon he basically was like sorry
[00:13:03] Dowdy I said did Dowie out and was basically what are you doing you're a fraud you're a charlatan
[00:13:08] you you're just making stuff up now and what you're doing is really gross well Moody said all this
[00:13:15] about Dowie and Dowie responded by saying you're attacking a man of God you're attacking
[00:13:21] somebody who's speaking in God's word and because of that I pronounce a curse on you Moody and
[00:13:27] you're gonna die and unfortunately Moody did die less than a year later Moody was only 62
[00:13:34] if you do know much about DL Moody you would know that he was um I don't know how to say this
[00:13:39] in like a politically correct way but he was not a healthy weight we'll put it that way
[00:13:43] I don't think that Moody died because Dowie cursed him I'll just put it that I don't think that
[00:13:47] was the related to it I think Moody was just had always lived a life of travel had worked really
[00:13:52] hard and like many of these guys like John Calvin who also died very young like uh J. Grisha
[00:13:56] Machen who also died before his time like see I see like that see I see like so many others
[00:14:01] though who had died before their time I just think he had worked himself too hard and was was
[00:14:05] time to go but it did cause problems um because of that because this Dowie guy basically pronounced
[00:14:11] that he had killed DL Moody with his curse and that's what happens when you stand up to him
[00:14:16] now if you have more interest in the actual death of DL Moody uh Joel and I have recorded uh his
[00:14:22] final sermon episode uh it's a it's a bit of an older one Joel and I were physically together
[00:14:27] when we recorded it and we actually walked out to the place where he recorded his last sermon
[00:14:32] granted we did that in the middle of the night on a snowy day but if you want to go listen to
[00:14:35] that you should go way back in the archives and look for DL Moody final sermon
[00:14:40] you know it would be a fun uh revive conversation topic uh why don't know this actually
[00:14:45] might get us in trouble a lot but I do find it interesting that there's always been kind of like
[00:14:52] religious crazy people throughout history you know like like delusional people that use
[00:14:59] religion and god as their justification for doing very crazy and unbiblical things that uh
[00:15:09] it's why we I mean I I feel like people will make fun of that stuff and see that stuff in today's
[00:15:14] day and age but uh throughout history it's it's always been there and it's got a lot of people killed
[00:15:20] I mean you look at the was it typing rebellion in China well yeah we're we're literally covering
[00:15:25] a giant episode not on on you're right it would make a really good revived conversation
[00:15:29] of just kind of covering this figure in history you know we're talking about we on our show we do
[00:15:34] world's greatest sermons like the history is great as sermons but I mean uh these charlatans are
[00:15:39] and they've been doing world's worst sermons but they do them well I love it the world's
[00:15:44] worst sermon but they do them they but they do a good job at them you know yeah we'd have to be
[00:15:49] careful there I could see a skin in trouble we could but it would be fun I like that idea I'm putting
[00:15:54] I put it on our list next to a few others I think it's a good idea gotcha okay so dally uh claim
[00:16:01] to have judged and killed Moody here and toys response to this is to preach against dally likewise
[00:16:07] dally then produces more notes supposedly by Tory and the drama continues so now it looks like
[00:16:18] dally has kind of shifted his his aggression towards R.A. Tory instead of Moody thankfully in 1901
[00:16:27] dally moves out of the Chicago area he moves away and it seems like kind of took the feud with him
[00:16:32] there there was he was no longer there to uh to stir up the pot so uh that that drama kind of
[00:16:38] died out on its own Tory would eventually begin travels all over the world uh including one
[00:16:45] that went through Asia that produced a sermon that we're gonna listen to here in a little bit
[00:16:49] he also spent a good amount of time in Australia he had a former student that began a ministry
[00:16:55] in Australia and invited him to come and speak there and after years of fighting in Chicago
[00:17:01] and the death of his mentor Moody he was happy to uh to go out there and get away for a little bit
[00:17:06] Tory would end up traveling back and forth a lot in his kind of final years and when I say final
[00:17:10] years um it i mean it's seen is the last 30 years of his life so you know if that can be considered
[00:17:15] your final years uh however he did this very specific tour through Asia and Australia where the
[00:17:20] current sermon you're about to listen to comes from this tour was very effective at bringing
[00:17:25] many people to Christ specifically uh he mentioned sermons in Shanghai and in a city in Japan although
[00:17:31] he didn't specify which one in his notes and then across New Zealand and Australia there were just a
[00:17:36] lot of people that were really stirred and he mentioned that they counted you know dozens if not
[00:17:41] hundreds of converts at different locations this tour took him uh like about two years to go through
[00:17:47] and back then remember they're traveling by boat their airplanes uh i can't tell if he traveled
[00:17:52] by family however he did have a really good relationship it seems with his family one note that's
[00:17:57] really interesting to me that you don't actually see all that often a lot of times we don't really
[00:18:02] know how the sons and family members of different people turn out we do know that Charles Spurgeon
[00:18:06] sons both went into the ministry and we we've covered them so there are people and Hudson Taylor's
[00:18:10] family did as well but this is really interesting R.A. Tory had a son that he named R.A. Tory the second
[00:18:17] and he went on to do ministry in East Asia his next son so this would be R.A. Tory the original's
[00:18:23] grandson R.A. Tory the third also went into ministry in Asia and uh his fourth though this person
[00:18:31] is named Ben Tory i don't know if he's just not R.A. Tory the fourth or like you know a younger brother
[00:18:36] or they finally stopped doing that at that point i'm not sure but he actually has also started a
[00:18:40] ministry over in Asia they're attempting to reach the the lost for uh Christ in North Korea as far
[00:18:46] as i can tell i didn't do like a deep dive on this ministry so i'm not i'm not in any way endorsing
[00:18:50] it but it is it is kind of neat to see that you R.A. must have had a decent relationship with
[00:18:55] this family because we're four generations in and they're still following the Lord as far as i can
[00:19:00] tell um which is that's pretty cool so yeah that's that's something you don't always get to see
[00:19:05] but it's neat to see the freedom of that uh that he had a good relationship so with that in mind
[00:19:10] i kind of think maybe he did travel this family
[00:19:20] we could go on and affect uh and go on and on about the effect of his preaching tours
[00:19:24] he was very very influential and something we didn't really get to cover in this episode but there's
[00:19:28] a big revival that's known to the church history uh called the Welsh Revival that happens in the year
[00:19:33] 1904 and Tory had just preached through that area just i mean literally on the heels of this revival
[00:19:39] so many credit him as being kind of the the match that starts that revival but however to sum up
[00:19:44] this life this incredible man and i do recommend listening to our other episode on them to catch up
[00:19:48] even more on him um but it's amazing to remember what i what really stood out to me listening to
[00:19:53] this was or going through this was that he started by rejecting Christ and specifically saying
[00:19:58] i won't go preach he was too scared to preach in public without holding on to the back of a chair
[00:20:04] just this was the last place he wanted to be and here at the end of his life he's just going around
[00:20:10] the world preaching Christ to hundreds and thousands of people everywhere he can um and impacting
[00:20:15] multiples and multiples of generations of families and people all around the world i mean think of
[00:20:19] just how many people went and heard him speak became Christian their children become Christian maybe
[00:20:23] their grandchildren become Christian and how many people are just affected by one person going on
[00:20:28] on one of these speaking tours and when asked at the end of his life you know what what got him through it
[00:20:33] how did he have time for it all what what made him do and he put himself through all this and
[00:20:37] all that traveling all that stuff he said and i quote i love to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ
[00:20:49] he will baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire Matthew 3-11
[00:21:06] one night years ago i was sitting at my desk in my study late at night and the work of the day was
[00:21:11] done there was a great deal of confusion about my study table for i had just moved that day and had not
[00:21:17] had time to rearrange my papers the work of the day being done i fell into a reverie and as i came
[00:21:23] out of that reverie i found myself gently waving back and forth in my right hand a little four page leaflet
[00:21:30] i do not know how i got into my hand i suppose i took it off of the table but i don't even know how
[00:21:35] i got onto the table before i had never seen it before i looked at that leaflet and i noticed
[00:21:39] these words across the top of the leaflet in large print wanted a baptism with fire it immediately
[00:21:46] grabbed my attention i said this is precisely what i do want if there is anybody on this earth that
[00:21:50] needs fire in his eye for i was born and had grown up cold as an iceberg so i had the leaflet
[00:21:58] there was not much in the leaflet that impressed me except the one text he will baptize you
[00:22:03] with the Holy Ghost and with fire and that not only impressed me it kept ringing in my mind and heart
[00:22:08] by day and by night i could not get away from it he will baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with
[00:22:14] fire the following Saturday evening when i went to a little gathering for prayer here at my church
[00:22:21] i said to the janitor of the church when the prayer meeting was over the promise says he will baptize
[00:22:26] you with the Holy Ghost and fire a sweet smile passed over the janitor's face and there was
[00:22:31] something about his look which made me think well the janitor seems to know all about it i wonder if
[00:22:36] he's got something his pastor has not got during the days of the next week when i sat down in my
[00:22:41] study when i walked with the streets that kept ringing in my ears he will baptize you with the
[00:22:46] Holy Ghost and with fire Thursday night came and at the close of my days work i knelt down before
[00:22:52] god and asked him for a text or for a subject for Sunday evenings sermon a brother from London was
[00:22:59] going to preach for me in the morning the only text i could see in the whole Bible was he will
[00:23:04] baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire and i said father i'm not to preach on a Sunday morning
[00:23:10] that's a Sunday morning text and i don't preach in the morning mr. Ingalls is going to preach then
[00:23:16] i generally preach in the morning to christians and to the unsaved in the evening
[00:23:20] i want an evening text but i could not see anything but just that one text he will baptize you with
[00:23:26] the Holy Ghost and with fire well i said father if that is the text you want me to preach on evening
[00:23:33] or morning i will preach it but i want to know just then there came looming out of the bible two other
[00:23:40] texts and both of those texts had fire in them. Wily was on my knees god just opened the three texts
[00:23:47] and i had my sermon the next Sunday night i went to my church and preached that sermon and when
[00:23:53] i had finished it i said now all the friends who want to be baptized with the Holy Ghost and
[00:23:58] fire tonight and all who want to be saved come downstairs the rooms downstairs were jammed
[00:24:05] and when all who replied to the invitation had found room i asked all who wanted to be baptized
[00:24:10] with the Holy Ghost and fire to go into the kindergarten room and those who wish to be saved to go
[00:24:15] into another room the inquiry room and the rest to stay where they were. They began to go into both
[00:24:21] rooms i went into the kindergarten room where the people were sitting in the little bits of
[00:24:26] kindergarten chairs it's so closely packed that i literally had to step over their heads to get to
[00:24:30] the platform oh what a time we had in that room that night and when i came out i asked my assistant
[00:24:37] who was in charge of the inquiry room what sort of time he had and he said the spirit of god was
[00:24:43] there and many people came into the light i asked professor towner the choir master who was left
[00:24:48] in charge of the third meeting composed of those who had not entered either one of the two rooms
[00:24:54] and he said we had no meeting at all i couldn't say a word the people got right down on their knees
[00:25:00] before god and talked to him i hope god will bless the word the same way tonight i believe you will
[00:25:07] you will find the first of the three fires in Matthew chapter 3 verse 11 i indeed baptized you
[00:25:14] with water for repentance but he that comes after me is mightier than i who shoes i am not worthy
[00:25:20] to bear he will baptize you with the holy ghost and with fire that is the first of the three
[00:25:25] fires the baptism with fire what does it mean now we know what it means to be baptized with water
[00:25:31] we've seen that but what does it mean to be baptized with fire you will get your answer by asking
[00:25:37] two things first what is fire said to do in the bible and second what happened to the apostles at
[00:25:46] pentacost when they were baptized with the holy ghost and fire the first thing the bible says that
[00:25:53] fire does is fire reveals in first Corinthians 3 13 we read every man's work will be made manifest
[00:26:01] for the day will declare it because it will be revealed by fire and the first thing that a baptism
[00:26:07] with fire does is to reveal what a man really is to show us to ourselves as god sees us i remember
[00:26:15] the night before i preached that sermon late on saturday night after the sermon was all arranged i
[00:26:20] got down and said heavenly father i think i have a sermon for tomorrow night but i don't believe
[00:26:25] i've got that of which the sermon speaks i'm gonna preach on the baptism with the holy ghost and
[00:26:29] fire and how can i preach on it if i have not had it now in order that i may preach an honest sermon
[00:26:37] baptized me with fire right now god heard that prayer and the first thing that came to pass
[00:26:44] that i had such a revelation of myself as i have never had before in all my life
[00:26:50] i had never dreamed there was so much pride so much vanity so much personal ambition so much
[00:26:58] downright meanness in my heart and life as i saw that night and men and women if you get a baptism
[00:27:04] with fire i believe one of the first things comes to you will be a revelation of yourself
[00:27:09] as god sees you is that not just what we need a revelation of ourselves today that will spare us the
[00:27:20] awful humiliation of the revelation of self on that day when we stand before the judgment seat of
[00:27:25] christ the second thing that fire does fire refines or purifies in malachi three versus one through
[00:27:34] three we are told of the purifying power of fire there is nothing that purifies like fire water will
[00:27:40] not cleanse as fire does suppose i have a piece of gold and there is some filth on the outside of it
[00:27:46] how can i get it off i can wash it off with water but suppose the filth is inside it
[00:27:51] how will you get it out there is only one way pro it into the fire and men and women if the filth
[00:27:58] is on the outside it can be washed away with the water of the word but the trouble that is the filth
[00:28:04] that is on the inside what we need is the fire of the holy ghost penetrating to the inmost depths
[00:28:11] of our being burning burning burning burning cleansing what a refining came to the apostles on that day
[00:28:21] of pentecost how full of self seeking had they been right up to the very last supper at the last
[00:28:27] supper they had a dispute as to who should be the first in the kingdom of heaven but after pentecost
[00:28:33] they no longer thought of self but of christ how weak and cowardly they had been right up to the
[00:28:39] crucifixion they all for so come and fled peter denied him at the accusation of a servant made with
[00:28:47] odes and curses but after the day of pentecost that time that peter cursed and swore and denied
[00:28:55] christ when the servant made accused him of being a fall of jesus faced the very counsel that
[00:29:00] condemned him and said if we this day be examined of the good deed done by the impotent man
[00:29:07] by what means he is made whole be it known for you all and to all the people of Israel that by the name
[00:29:14] of jesus christ of nasrith whom you crucified whom god raised from the dead even by him does this man
[00:29:22] stand here before you whole friends cleansing is a very slow process by ordinary means but a
[00:29:31] baptism with fire does marvels in a moment in the third place the bible teaches us that fire
[00:29:40] consumes in ezekiel 24 11 to 13 we are told of the consuming power of fire the fire of judgment that
[00:29:47] will consume the filth and dross of jirusselum and the baptism of fire consumes in fact it cleanses by
[00:29:55] consuming it burns up all dross all vanity all self righteousness all personal ambition all
[00:30:01] ungovernable temper we once had at the bible institute of chicago a young woman who was much
[00:30:09] that a christian should not be when we heard she was coming all of us an authority thought she would
[00:30:17] never ought to have come to the bible institute i thought so when i heard she was coming for i had
[00:30:21] known her in the school from which she came and i knew she was one of the most unmanageable scholars
[00:30:27] they ever had in the school she was stubborn willful proud quick tempered boisterous loud and
[00:30:34] pretty much everything a girl ought not to be when i heard she was coming to the bible institute
[00:30:39] i said so and so coming to the bible institute what in the world does she want at the bible institute
[00:30:45] but her uncle was one of the best friends the institute ever had and so out of consideration for
[00:30:50] her uncle we admitted her now we require every student in that bible institute that some definite
[00:30:57] work to save the lost should go hand in hand with bible study for bible study unless it is accompanied
[00:31:03] with actual work for the salvation of souls will dry up a man's soul quicker than almost anything else
[00:31:10] we required the young woman to go into the tenements the homes of the poor in the outcast
[00:31:14] one afternoon this girl had been visiting Milton avenue in towns and street to the poorest streets
[00:31:19] in chicago after her time she became very tired with claiming up and down the stairs and going in
[00:31:26] and out of the filthy houses and instead of returning to the institute she walked on in a very
[00:31:32] rebellious frame of mind and went down to lake shore drive the finest avenue in chicago
[00:31:38] along the shore of the lake and as she passed by those magnificent mentions there she looked up at
[00:31:43] them with an eye that danced with pleasure and said this is what i like i've had enough of
[00:31:49] Milton avenue i've had enough of claiming stairs and going into tenements this is what i like it this
[00:31:53] is what i am going to have she came back to the institute and went straight to a room still in a very
[00:31:59] bitter and rebellious frame of mind the tea bill rang before the battle was over and she went to
[00:32:04] the table and took hers and sat down and there at the tea table the fire of god fell right where
[00:32:10] that girl was sitting she sprang from her seat and rushed over to a friend at the other table and
[00:32:16] threw her arms around her exclaimed i will become a volunteer for africa and that fire of god and
[00:32:23] in a moment burned and burned and burned until that young woman was so changed her actions were
[00:32:29] so changed her views of life her tastes her ambitions her very face was so changed in a moment
[00:32:34] that when her old friend saw her and heard her they could hardly believe their own ears and eyes
[00:32:40] later on she went back to that same school down in massachusetts where she had been such a hindrance
[00:32:45] and with burning words poured out her heart to the girls there and with mighty power led them to
[00:32:50] the lamb of god which takes away the sins of the world isn't that what we need tonight
[00:32:56] a fire that will burn up this pride of ours this selfishness of ours this vanity of ours this
[00:33:04] worldliness of ours burn up all these things that hinder the world from coming to christ because we
[00:33:10] make men think that Christianity is unreal you women with unconverted husband isn't that what
[00:33:16] you need a baptism with fire transforming your life and clothing you with beauty so that your
[00:33:21] husband will say I must have what my wife has got in the next place fire illuminates
[00:33:31] oftentimes when in chicago i look off towards the northwest of the city suddenly i see the heavens
[00:33:37] light up and then go dark again and they are illuminated once more and then darkened
[00:33:42] the great foundry doors had been opened and shut and opened and shut and this light in the heavens
[00:33:48] was the glow from the furnaces fire illuminates but no fire illuminates like the baptism with a
[00:33:55] holy ghost and fire when a man is baptized with a holy ghost and fire truth that was dark to him
[00:34:01] before becomes instantly as bright as day passages in the bible that he could not understand before
[00:34:08] become simple as abc and every page of god's holy word glows with heavenly light a baptism with
[00:34:16] fire will do more to take the infidelity and skepticism and false doctrine out of a man than any
[00:34:21] university education how many a young fellow comes out of a theological education more than half an
[00:34:27] infidel but the great day comes when that half-infidel preacher is baptized with holy ghost and a fire
[00:34:34] and his doubts and his questionings and his criticisms go to the winds how many an untaught or
[00:34:40] half-taught man has so wonderful and acquaintance with the truth of god that men who are scholars sit at
[00:34:46] his feet with profound atonement because he has been illuminated with the baptism of the holy ghost and
[00:34:53] fire take the case of the girl again i was away when the event i described happened and the first
[00:34:59] thing i heard when i returned was what had happened with her and i was going from the men's side
[00:35:03] of the institute and was passing between the church and the women's end when this young girl turned
[00:35:08] into the gate and met me she looked up into my face and said oh professatory have you heard
[00:35:15] yes i have heard i said i have heard what has happened and then she just began to pour out her soul
[00:35:21] she fairly danced on the sidewalk when she told me and i knew at once when it meant to dance before
[00:35:27] the lord and she closed about this way one of the best things about it is the bibles of new book
[00:35:35] the bible used to be just the stupidest book i'd ever read and i didn't believe it was the word
[00:35:39] of god it all i did believe in the divinity of jesus christ because your lectures compelled me but the
[00:35:43] bible was a stupid book but oh now god is showing me such wonderful things in the bible
[00:35:53] now be honest are there not some of you tonight the profess to be christians to whom the bible is a
[00:35:59] stupid book if you would tell the honest truth would you not rather read a novel than the bible
[00:36:05] you do read the bible because you think you must but you get no enjoyment out of it
[00:36:10] what you need is a baptism with a holy ghost and fire and that would make the bible a new book
[00:36:15] and glory would shine from every page the next thing that fire does is fire makes it warm it makes it
[00:36:26] glow you stand before referness door behind which is a glowing fire you have your hand
[00:36:31] a bar of iron it's cold and black and forbidding and there's no beauty in it but you take that cold
[00:36:36] dark forbidding bar of iron and you open the furnace door and thrust into the glowing fire soon
[00:36:41] it is warm then it becomes red hot and glows with marvelous beauty and you have the cold bar of
[00:36:47] iron glowing with fire you and i are cold oh how cold we are and the lord jesus takes us and he
[00:36:58] plunges us into the fire of the holy spirit and we begin to glow warm and soon we glow we glow
[00:37:05] with love to god glow with love to christ glow with love to the truth glow with love for perishing
[00:37:11] souls men and women the great need of the day is men and women on fire
[00:37:17] brethren that is what we need in the pulpit ministers on fire
[00:37:21] what cold men most of us preachers are orthodox enough it may be and we present the most solemn
[00:37:26] truth with a great force of reason and great beauty of rhetoric and most convincing eloquence
[00:37:30] and our audience is sit there and admire our strong preaching but they don't repent of their sins
[00:37:36] why not because we are not on fire we convince the intellect but we don't melt the heart
[00:37:46] but put a minister who is on fire in the pulpit westerly with such a man with field with such a man
[00:37:52] put a man on fire in the pulpit in the audience will melt but we need that kind of people in the
[00:37:58] choir as well what beautiful choirs we have nowadays when they almost sing like angels and people
[00:38:03] sit there admiring them but no one's converted from their songs but when we get a man on fire to
[00:38:09] sing or a woman on fire to sing or a choir on fire to sing something is brought to pass that's
[00:38:17] what we need in our Sunday school classes we need a young man or a young woman to teach a Sunday
[00:38:22] school class and they know the lesson rapidly and studying all the latest help and take the lesson
[00:38:27] tremendously interesting but the boys and girls have been and women in their classes are not converted
[00:38:32] because their teachers are not on fire men and women of London they need in London more than anything
[00:38:42] else tonight a baptism with fire on the minister a baptism with fire on the elders a baptism with
[00:38:48] fire on the deacons a baptism on fire on the choir a baptism on fire on the sunny school a baptism
[00:38:53] on fire on the personal workers and a baptism with fire upon the men and women in the congregation
[00:39:00] we're saying a hymn just now praying that the fire god might fall
[00:39:06] in mild make conference halt tonight if it does men and women if it does London will be shaken
[00:39:17] a man takes me to his factory he says this machine he reads the best of the world
[00:39:21] he takes me on down into the engine room he says look at that great engine it is so many horse
[00:39:26] power and there is power in that engine to move every great wheel in this great factory
[00:39:30] and then I go back to the factory and I look around and there is nothing happening
[00:39:35] it's very strange I say didn't you tell me that this was the best machinery in the world for this
[00:39:40] purpose and that the engine downstairs could move every wheel in the factory
[00:39:43] well I notice all the connections are made and everything is in gear and the lever is carry the
[00:39:48] right way but there is not a wheel moving in all the factory what's the matter
[00:39:53] well don't you know he says come downstairs and I'll show you
[00:39:57] and he takes me down again to the engine room to the engine and he throws open the door and
[00:40:01] says look in there and low there is no fire in the fire box
[00:40:07] I go off to the railway there's a great engine standing on the rails and I'm told it's the finest
[00:40:12] engine that was ever turned out from the locomotive works it could drag a heavily frayed train
[00:40:16] up 100 foot grade the engine has been coupled onto about a half a dozen unloaded cars
[00:40:22] I look at the engine and say what did you tell me it can draw a hundred
[00:40:28] it can draw a heavily loaded train up 100 foot grade
[00:40:36] what did you tell me can it draw a heavily loaded train up 100 foot grade then will you please
[00:40:41] explain something to me that engine only has six empty cars behind it the couple he's made
[00:40:46] the throttle is open and it's not moving cannot pull a car and yet you say it can pull a hundred
[00:40:53] what's the matter and I am taken to the engine and the door the furnace is thrown open and when I look
[00:40:58] in I see that there is no fire in the fire box that's what's the matter friends I go into churches
[00:41:05] today and what beautiful organization I see what magnificent architecture what eloquent preaching
[00:41:11] I hear what marvelous singing and yet not a wheel in the whole institution is moving for God
[00:41:17] what's the matter there's no fire in the fire box what we need today is the fire of God
[00:41:25] in the fire box and thank God the promises he will baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire
[00:41:32] and one more thing about this fire fire spreads nothing spreads like fire I remember hearing
[00:41:38] some years ago before I went to live in Chicago about an old Irish woman who had a little shanty
[00:41:44] in the city with a little shed in the back of it in which she kept a cow and one night she was
[00:41:50] milking her cow and the cow suddenly kicked and knocked over her lantern and that lantern fell on
[00:41:55] a wisp straw which caught fire and that shed
[00:41:59] which caught fire and set the shed a fire and the shed set the shanty on fire and the shanty next
[00:42:11] to it caught it on fire and the shanty next to that and the one next to that and soon the fire
[00:42:15] leaped over the south branch the Chicago River to the east side and on and on it swept
[00:42:20] and in 48 hours it had cleared an area one mile wide and three miles long and there were but two
[00:42:27] buildings left in all of that section of Chicago fire spreads if a fire is kindled here tonight it
[00:42:36] will sweep over all London all over Great Britain and Ireland that night I spoke of at the beginning
[00:42:44] of my sermon we had a stranger from London in Chicago who came to hear me preach
[00:42:52] who came to hear me preach he came downstairs in response to my invitation and he told us
[00:42:58] I am just in Chicago today from London and I want this baptism of fire and he got it
[00:43:03] and when he left the church he went to his room and sat down and wrote a letter to the Bible class
[00:43:08] of which he was a member in London the teacher read it to the class and the fire of God came into
[00:43:13] that class and in about two weeks after he had sent the letter he got word from London that the
[00:43:18] fire which fell in Chicago had been kindled in that church in London nothing spreads like fire do you
[00:43:26] see how bad we need this fire tonight the second fire that you will find in 1 Corinthians 313 and 15
[00:43:38] every man's work will be made manifest for the day will declare it because it will be revealed by
[00:43:43] fire and the fire will try every man's work of what sort it is if any man's work is burned he
[00:43:49] suffers loss but he himself will be saved yet so as by fire the second fire
[00:43:55] is the fire of judgment testing our works at the judgment seat of Christ
[00:44:00] now you notice that the judgment here is not the judgment concerning our salvation
[00:44:05] these are saved people whose works are burnt up all the work we do for Christ is to be put to
[00:44:11] the test is to be put to the severest kind of test the fire test and friends there is a great
[00:44:19] deal the church of Christ is doing professionally for Christ and a great deal individual Christians
[00:44:26] are doing that will never stand the fire test do you think that these church fairs and bazaars
[00:44:32] and all that sort of comfoolery by which the church of Christ is brought down to the level of the
[00:44:37] dime museum into which so many professed Christians are putting their best energies do you think
[00:44:43] that these will stand the fire test never they will go up in smoke you may be saved but you will
[00:44:50] lose your reward you will be saved as if by fire a great deal of work that is good but not done
[00:44:58] to God's glory but for personal ambition the good sermon perfectly orthodox severely logical beautifully
[00:45:05] rhetorical the sermon that even good people applaud but that has preached not that God may be glorified
[00:45:12] in the salvation of sinners but that the preacher may be applauded do you think that will stand the
[00:45:18] fire test never it will go up and smoke the beautiful solos and the great charity worked on the
[00:45:24] personal soul-saving work done not for God's glory but for the exaltation of self will these
[00:45:30] stand the fire test never they will go up in smoke
[00:45:37] on the night of which I have been speaking in my church the two leading singers went down to that
[00:45:44] second meeting and the leading soprano said a beautiful singer one of the most beautiful singers
[00:45:49] I've ever heard I never thought of it before I don't believe I've sung a solo in my life for God
[00:45:56] I sang it for myself thank God the fire of God it came upon my leading soprano and my leading
[00:46:03] contralto and I lost them both because they became missionaries I'd like to lose the whole choir if
[00:46:08] I could lose them that way furthermore let me say good work work done for a good purpose but
[00:46:16] done in our own strength and not in the power of the Holy Ghost will not stand the fire test
[00:46:22] the sermon preached to glorify God but preached with the enticing words of man's wisdom and not
[00:46:27] in demonstration of the spirit and power of God will it stand the fire test never so men women
[00:46:35] our work is to be tried regarding its character regarding its motive regarding its power in which
[00:46:40] it is done will your work stand the fire and we come down to the third fire we read of it in
[00:46:50] second Thessalonians chapter one verses seven through nine the Lord Jesus has revealed from heaven
[00:46:55] with his mighty angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that do not know God
[00:47:00] that do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ they will be punished with ever lasting
[00:47:05] destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power the third fire
[00:47:13] is the fire of eternal doom every one of us must meet God in fire somewhere some of us I hope tonight
[00:47:22] we'll meet him in the fire of baptism with the Holy Ghost and fire some of us I know we'll
[00:47:27] meet him in that great judgment day when the fire will try our work what sort of is and oh friends
[00:47:34] some of us I fear God granted it may be very few may meet him in the fire of eternal doom
[00:47:43] someone says do you think it's a literal fire I'm not going to stop to discuss that take it as
[00:47:48] a figure if you will but remember that figures always stand for facts some people if they find
[00:47:53] anything in the Bible that they do not like they say it is figurative and they think that that has
[00:47:58] swept it all away remember who uses the figures they are gods figures and gods figures stand for facts
[00:48:05] and God is not a liar so these figures never overstate the facts they represent
[00:48:09] and how terrible must the mental and spiritual agony be described by that figure if figure B
[00:48:16] were you ever severely burnt have you ever seen anyone severely burnt I have been how awful
[00:48:24] must be the spiritual or physical agony whichever one it is that is represented by touch a terrible
[00:48:30] figure as fire the superficial thinker says oh I can't believe that I cannot believe that a
[00:48:39] merciful God is going to let men go on suffering day after day week after week a month or for
[00:48:43] month year after year with no hope open your eyes look at what's going on right around you in
[00:48:50] London is not God permitting men and women who sin especially in certain specific forms of sin to
[00:48:56] suffer most awful agonies day after day month after month year after year without hope of relief
[00:49:03] unless they repent and when that time of possible repentance has passed and it must pass sometime
[00:49:11] on the time of possible repentance has passed and this goes on and on and on ever worse and worse
[00:49:17] what have you got left but hell you don't get rid of hell by getting rid of a bible or by getting
[00:49:22] rid of God hell is here hell is a fact in London tonight the only change the Bible and God make
[00:49:29] is that they open a door of hope and when you banish God and the Bible the only change you make
[00:49:34] is that you shut the only door of hope the infidel's are guilty of the amazing folly of trying to
[00:49:41] close hell by shutting the only door of hope hell is here it is a present day fact and unless
[00:49:49] there is repentance and acceptance of Christ it will be an eternal and endless fact you say for
[00:49:57] whom listen rendering vengeance to them that do not know God and for them that do not obey the gospel
[00:50:06] first to them who do not know God this is plain English for agnostics you know what agnostic
[00:50:13] means a great many people are proud of saying I am an agnostic well agnostic means no not or
[00:50:20] know nothing it is used of those who know not God so our text says God will render vengeance to
[00:50:27] agnostics someone says that's not just well I cannot help that it is a fact but it is just
[00:50:37] you ought to know God you have no excuse for not knowing God the most solemn duty that lies upon
[00:50:43] every man is to find out about God and there is a way to know God the trouble is you don't want
[00:50:49] to know God an agnostic that wants to know God will soon get acquainted with him I was once an
[00:50:55] agnostic but I was an honest one and I didn't take long to find God only the other night a man
[00:51:02] said to me I'm an agnostic I pointed him to a way out of agnosticism a reasonable way and asked
[00:51:10] isn't that reasonable and he said yes and I said well will you try it and he said no I won't
[00:51:18] his agnosticism is not his misfortune it is his sin the first and most solemn obligation resting
[00:51:25] on the creature is to know and worship and serve the creator you ought to know God and if you refuse
[00:51:31] to know him the Lord Jesus will be revealed at last rendering vengeance to you and other agnostics
[00:51:40] but not only to agnostics but to them that do not obey the gospel many a man is not an agnostic
[00:51:49] but he doesn't obey the gospel there are many of you people who would support what I say about
[00:51:55] agnosticism but you don't obey the gospel you do not believe with real faith which means absolute
[00:52:05] surrender and confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ you do not obey Christ as your Lord and master
[00:52:12] you do not openly confess him as the gospel commands he will render vengeance to you
[00:52:21] you will be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory
[00:52:27] of his power men and women every one of us must meet God in fire oh two night you do not
[00:52:40] two night do you not want to meet him in the glorious fire of the Holy Ghost refining you from sin
[00:52:49] cleansing the dross and filth illuminating you with God's glorious truth warming the cold heart
[00:52:55] until it glows with holy love energizing you with the power of God and spreading wherever it goes
[00:53:04] or do you wish to meet God in fire in the judgment day that day will try your works about character
[00:53:12] and mode it judgment day that will try your work as to character motive the power that
[00:53:21] rotted and send all your works up in smoke and leave you there stripped saved so as by fire
[00:53:30] or will you meet God in that awful fire of eternal doom when the day comes
[00:53:41] that the same Christ whom you have rejected and trampled under foot comes back again in the glory
[00:53:47] of the father with this mighty angels rendering vengeance to them that no not God
[00:53:55] and obey not the gospel
[00:54:09] as you listen to the ceremony listen to him discuss what kind of things fire does fire
[00:54:14] I think one of the things I thought was interesting is when he discusses the idea of what a fire is
[00:54:18] it it glows it provides light it warms it you know it provides comfort it spreads
[00:54:24] tells how there's about Jesus Christ and he talks about those three different fires
[00:54:28] and where people will be in mourning what kind of things and situations they'll be and I think
[00:54:32] Tori just does a really good job of laying it all out there in a very simplistic way
[00:54:37] and I don't know about you but I when I was editing this sermon it was just what I needed to hear
[00:54:43] I actually was that was I felt like the timing of it was just right for me hopefully you listen to
[00:54:48] it and it was the same for you were this was just what you needed here and I really appreciate
[00:54:52] that Tori just there's no other way to do it it's either you are become a Christian or your loss
[00:54:59] forever this is the only two routes to go make your decision now and get on with it already because
[00:55:05] the the judgment is going to be really steep and it's coming right around the moment
[00:55:10] and I really appreciate to how we balance the idea of fire can be such a good thing and fire
[00:55:15] can be such a dangerous thing and how it can be at the same time and how he feared that many churches
[00:55:20] are like those factories where the fire wasn't on and so they had all the right equipment
[00:55:25] they had all the right things in place but the factory's not moving because the fire isn't on yet
[00:55:30] and I just I think his picture of that's what he thought the church looked like so many churches
[00:55:34] had all the right equipment all the pieces are in place maybe even the workers are standing by
[00:55:38] but without that fire there's nothing going on and he just really emphasizes if you don't have
[00:55:43] the Holy Spirit if you're not moving with God then you're like those factories you may you may
[00:55:48] look great but there's no products going out so really enjoyed I enjoyed this sermon a lot and for
[00:55:53] me it was just the right sermon at the right time
[00:55:55] thank you for listening to today's episode of Revive Thoughts Today's sermon was
[00:56:13] narrated by Ed Batgel a regular on this show that we love having pastor Ed is a Washington state
[00:56:19] native he is taught for 30 plus years in churches and Oregon Washington Nebraska and currently in
[00:56:25] Warden Washington he has been serving awarding community church since May of 2010 if you enjoyed this
[00:56:31] episode of Revive Thoughts I will ask you very kindly to share it with a friend let somebody else
[00:56:37] know that you're listening to the show and say hey maybe you should listen to Revive Thoughts too
[00:56:41] it's got lots of great sermons from the past and it's got lots of back stories to help you learn
[00:56:46] and grow more in your relationship with God nothing honestly nothing makes us more joy than knowing
[00:56:50] that people have done that and I cannot tell you how many times that we read reviews or read comments
[00:56:55] or read emails and it's not some famous name sharing us because that really doesn't happen too
[00:56:59] often but it's just someone saying hey I heard about this show from a friend of mine and I'm really
[00:57:04] grateful they shared it so please get out there and let your friends know what we're doing here at
[00:57:07] Revive Thoughts and it'll continue to do it for a long long time this is Troy and Jill and this is
[00:57:13] Revive Thoughts